Donald Trump is the oldest person ever to be nominated by a major party to run for president—if elected, he would be the oldest sitting president in U.S. history by the end of his term. His recent public appearances have heightened concerns over his perceived cognitive decline given his age.
In the last month of the race, Vice President Kamala Harris, 60, and former President Donald Trump, 78, ramped up efforts to win over the American people as early voting opened in several battleground states.
Harris has been on a media blitz after mostly avoiding interviews in her campaign thus far, sitting for interviews on Howard Stern’s satellite radio program, Stephen Colbert’s late-night talk show, and even Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast.
Meanwhile, Trump is trying to recapture some of the momentum he had before Biden dropped out, calling Elon Musk to the stage at one of his rallies and revisiting the site of his first assassination attempt in July. He has come under sharp criticism as his speeches grow longer, less focused, and angrier. He is increasingly fixated on the past, according to a review of his public appearances over the years, which reinforces questions about his age.
So what has changed?
Trump has always maintained a distinct and discursive style in his public speaking. His tangential rambling can be seen in interviews from the 1980s. In the decades since, his interviews, speeches, and other public appearances have grown longer and less focused, often showing signs of confusion and losing his train of thought.
Where in his business ventures he certainly was always unpredictable, Trump’s speeches on his campaign trail have become exceedingly erratic, abrasive, and scattered. He is frequently unintelligible, even for a politician known for his off-the-cuff style across three presidential campaigns.
Trump repeats himself, Trump derails from the subject matter, and Trump leans increasingly on fantastical claims. Last week, he staged an impromptu dance session at a town hall event. He has renewed “enemy within” talk. His audience had to correct him when he mistakenly said the country was on the brink of a second world war.
One of the most striking examples of his misremembering lately was when he claimed that the audience “went crazy” for him in the hall for his debate with Harris, despite there being no live audience present.
A computer analysis by The New York Times reveals that Trump’s rally speeches now average 82 minutes, an increase from 45 minutes in 2016. He speaks in absolutes like “always” and “never” 13 percent more than eight years ago, a change some experts attribute to his advancing age.
Also potentially indicative of cognitive shifts, he now uses 32 percent more negative words than positive ones, up from 21 percent in 2016, and he has increased his use of swearwords by 69 percent since his first campaign. Experts suggest this trend may be a sign of “disinhibition,” according to The New York Times. Similar findings were reported in a study by Stat, a healthcare news outlet.
Trump Age Mounting Public Concerns
Trump denies that he has any cognitive issues. He is adamant that his advancing age has no relevance in this election, and has self-identified the recent changes in his speechmaking as his “weave.”
“I call it ‘the weave.’ And some people think it’s so genius. But the bad people, what they say is, ‘You know, he was rambling.’ That’s not a ramble. There’s no rambling,” said Trump in an interview with American comedian Andrew Schulz on the “Flagrant” podcast. “This is a weave. I call it the weave. You need an extraordinary memory because you have to come back to where you started.”
Many remain skeptical. On Oct. 13, 238 doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals called on Trump to disclose his medical records.
“The American people deserve confidence in their elected officials’ ability to do their jobs,” the signatories wrote in a letter obtained by CBS. “Trump should provide transparency on his health and mental acuity, especially given his age.”
Organized by a group called ‘Doctors for Harris’—unaffiliated with the Harris campaign itself—doctors and nurses push that presidential candidates have traditionally released their medical records, citing Senator John McCain in 2008. They write that Trump’s marked refusal to disclose even the most basic health information is “a disservice” to the American people.
The letter also notes that lacking detailed health records, he is forcing the public to judge his capacities based on his public appearances. By that metric, they conclude: “Trump is falling concerningly short of any standard of fitness for office and displaying alarming characteristics of declining acuity.”
Amid the controversy, Harris released a letter from her White House doctor confirming she is in “excellent health,” daring Trump to do the same.
“It makes you wonder: Why does his staff want him to hide away?” said Harris at a rally in North Carolina. “One must question: Are they afraid that people will see that he is too weak and unstable to lead America?”
Decision Day
With just one day until Election Day, Harris and Trump are making their final case to voters. The question of Trump’s fitness for office has cast a shadow over his campaign. His age has ignited a debate about the capabilities required to lead a nation.
A video shows Trump forgetting which state he’s in during his home-stretch rally blitz this weekend. TikTok user Laura commented: “This is the 7th time or more that he’s shown symptoms of sundowning in front of everyone and legacy media refuses to report on it.”
Joni Gilmore added: “And he said Kamala Harris looks exhausted.????
As voters prepare to make their decisions, they must weigh the candidates’ messages against their health and readiness to govern. Doing so sets the stage for a historic election with implications far beyond the ballots.
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